Europe in 2025

 

People, education and culture drive productivity

Policy Recommendations

We are beginning to track our Vision 2025 starting on 15 January 2010.

Build national platforms

Build national platforms that support and evaluate ongoing initiatives aimed at obtaining more effective interactions between business and schools, and promote development of new such initiatives.

ERT Comment

A few Member States already have national platforms and a number of others are in the process of establishing a national platform. (last updated December 2011)

Support life-long learning

Support life-long learning by transforming education systems to better enable working adults to pursue part-time education in parallel to their job.

ERT Comment

The Commission has worked to raise awareness of this issue at the Member State level, but it is the Member States which must act. Currently the participation rate of adults in continuous university education varies greatly in the EU. (last updated December 2011)

Build stronger links between the public and private sectors in education

Build stronger links between the public and private sectors in education with the support of the business community. This should include the development of education networks and strengthening of the link between education, research and business (the knowledge triangle).

ERT Comment

The Commission has made efforts to reinforce this cooperation. Examples include the continuation of the Thematic Forum on University-Business Cooperation and the new thematic Forum on School-Business Cooperation is helping to foster these links. There has also been continued emphasis on public-private partnerships which are being discussed at Member State level. (last updated December 2011)

Further increase student mobility within the EU

Further increase student mobility within the EU by firmly embedding cross-border academic exchange as an obligatory part in most study programmes, supported by scholarship opportunities such as the Erasmus programme. Similar programmes should encourage the cross-border mobility of scientists and lecturers.

ERT Comment

Both DG Education and DG Employment are supporting initiatives to encourage cross-border student mobility. (last updated December 2011)

Create fully integrated European professional schools and universities

Create fully integrated European professional schools and universities dedicated to a specific research theme. Each such school could be based in one single location to speed up knowledge dissemination.

ERT Comment

There have been no developments in this area. (last updated December 2011)

Improve comparability of EU universities

Improve comparability of EU universities by finalising efforts to develop an EU-wide ranking system.

ERT Comment

The Commission is finalising a multi-criteria ranking system for universities. (last updated December 2011)

Re-design Europe-wide immigration rules

Re-design Europe-wide immigration rules on the principles of openness, clarity and predictability. Eliminate obstacles to the free movement of highly-skilled third-country nationals within the EU, especially between EU-based universities and between EU-based industrial R&D activities.

ERT Comment

The European Commission has presented a draft proposal on inter-corporate temporary transfers for third country nationals. (last updated December 2011)

Increase the use of scholarships to attract foreign academics to EU universities

Increase the use of scholarships to attract foreign academics to EU universities, along the lines of the Erasmus Mundus programme. Visa rules should be adjusted to allow students from third countries to prolong their stay in the EU for the duration of an internship directly after the end of their academic programme.

ERT Comment

Although attracting talents from third countries is one of the key priorities of the European Union, the current EU legislation does not give the necessary incentives in order to attract young talents from third countries to work in the EU. The main shortage of the current EU legislation covers both visa policy and immigration policy related to the right of young third country graduates to exercise economic activity in the EU. The paid internships are submitted to the condition of minimal offered salary which very often is higher than the companies are willing to pay for an internship .On the other hand the unpaid internships are submitted to the condition of a disposal of adequate financial resources by the young graduate which gives the possibility only to a restrictive number of more wealthy students and young graduates to accede to this opportunity. In this perspective a critical issue is that the amount of the scholarships granted for the exchange programs or unpaid internships are not enough to cover the disposal of the “adequate financial resources” conditioned by the Member States. (last updated December 2011)

Modify legal and fiscal rules to support smarter working methods

Modify legal and fiscal rules to support smarter working methods. This should include more flexible rules to support the use of teleworking, part-time work after retirement and part-time university studies for adults.

ERT Comment

The Commission has worked to raise awareness at the Member State level, however it is the Member States which must act. The Europe 2020 Strategy proposes to 'adapt the legislative framework, in line with 'smart' regulation principles, to evolving work patterns'. (last updated December 2011)

Make ambitious progress towards the completion of the EU's Single Market

Make ambitious progress towards the completion of the EU’s Single Market, especially in the area of financial services and eliminating all remaining obstacles to cross-border mobility of people and knowledge.

ERT Comment

ERT welcomes and supports the proposed Single Market Act. . But we would support further ambitious policy initiatives to provide a strategic drive towards broadening and deepening the EU’s Single Market. We encourage a supplementary initiative to make Single Market principles more ‘systemic’ in the EU policy framework by pre-empting some of the obstacles that have been encountered in the past. (last updated December 2011)

Promote excellent energy infrastructure

Promote excellent energy infrastructure. Ensure that the necessary grid and infrastructure developments proceed in tandem with the required change in EU energy supply to meet 2020 targets and beyond, including smart electrical grids, enhanced natural gas networks to support expanded access and CO2 transport pipelines.

ERT Comment

The legal framework for investment in smart grids and CO2 transport pipelines has been improved. However, at present there is no investment commitment. There has been progress in investment in natural gas networks. (last updated December 2011)

Promote and develop sustainable modes of transport and innovative infrastructure

Promote and develop sustainable modes of transport and innovative infrastructure designed to enable low-carbon mobility of people and goods across Europe. Integrate transport and land use planning and use EU structural funds to promote high-technology infrastructure solutions.

ERT Comment

The Energy 2050 Roadmap has been delayed. The impact of the Green Car Initiative and the Transport White Paper and the coherency of policy and funding is not clear. (last updated December 2011)